Of Doves & Phoenixes
by ChesirexKittyxCat
Summary: Marco is obviously a guy, but he has a little brother, named Mateo… that looks like a girl. But, you have to admit. Even though Mateo is more feminine then most, he's still the best little brother Marco could ask for. 50 Drabbles Marco&OC fluff


Of Doves & Phoenixes

Summary: Marco is obviously a guy, but he has a little brother, named Mateo… that looks like a girl. But, you have to admit. Even though Mateo is more feminine then most, he's still the best little brother Marco could ask for. 50 Drabbles Marco&OC fluff~

Rating: Rated T 'Cause… THAT'S THE LAST LETTER IN "NEST". O_o

Disclaimer: I Only Own Mateo

What The Radio Says: "Cosmic Love" By Florence & The Machine

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

_Requested By Evalyd Yamazaki; Who Wanted Drabbles Including Marco. I Hope You Enjoy it, Hun'. ^^_

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

**01. ****Gift**  
>Marco could remember his hometown rather fondly, he didn't have a mother or father really –both dieing when he was young- but he wasn't without responsibility, without trying to be a good role model like the other orphans of his town had become… Because he had a little brother, who he had named Mateo, meaning, "Gift from God". Life was harder trying to feed two mouths instead of just one, yes, but it also made life more worth living. And even though he left him behind, so he'd be safer, Mateo was still a gift from God in Marco's eyes.<p>

**02. ****Fear**  
>At the time, Marco had become wide-eyed when Captain Whitebeard had announced that they would be returning to Marco's hometown, though Marco did not speak with or against this. But still, as he stared down at the bridge connecting the ship to the town's harbor, he stared, scared.<br>Because it had been over 22 years since he left here, would Mateo even still be alive?

**03. ****Feminine  
><strong>To be honest, Marco had expected to see his younger brother just as he had left him. Scrawny, dirty, and small for his age (which had been about 5 or 6). What he did NOT expect is that when he went into the bar, to procrastinate seeing his younger brother after so long, is that he found his crew members flirting with some girl, a group of them huddled around her.  
>Sure, that didn't seem out of the ordinary…<br>It was just that when Marco peeked in, smirking at this beauty, and he saw the "girl's" face for the first time…  
>The "young lady's" eyes lit up as "she" ran to the Phoenix, giving the taller man a hug, "she" squealed, "Big brother!"<br>Marco's eyes went wide, "MATEO?" The crew members sweat-dropped, turning red as they realized their gender-mistake, "GET THE H*LL OUT OF THAT DRESS!"

**04. Blame**  
>To be honest; Marco wasn't sure who to be angrier at.<br>Mateo; for just plain dressing like this.  
>The town; for taking this "good" care of his younger brother.<br>Or himself; when he could've brought Mateo with him and avoided this.  
>The third option won, which is why he signed up Mateo for becoming a Whitebeard pirate.<p>

**05. Chef**  
>In under the first week, Mateo got an official job as one of the cooks. None of the cooks minded ("Eh, Mateo's a great cook! Real potential, I'd say."), and defiantly none of the other pirates…<br>Who'd keep forgetting Mateo's real gender until Marco knocked –literally- some sense into them.

**06. Insulted**  
>"Mateo… tell me the truth."<br>"Of course, big brother!"  
>"Are you… Do you like guys?"<br>"What the h*ll, bro'? What gave you that idea!"  
>Okay, so the fact remained simple; Mateo is not into yaoi, he just looked like a girl and took advantage of it to make money.<br>"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE, BAKA?"*

**07. Protection**  
>While everyone laughed at Ace's newest story about his younger brother, Marco was staring wide-eyed at his little brother.<br>Dressed in a French maid uniform.  
>Smiling as HE (notice the fact that he's a MALE) served dinner, all of the pirates once again forgetting his true gender.<br>That wasn't the problem though; there was nothing new about that…  
>The pirate about to touch his little brother's *ss was.<br>Loudly, a chair scratched the surface of the wood, "OI! FIVE FEET BACK! YES, YOU! FIVE FEET!"

**08. Memories**  
>Marco blinked, and then smiled, when he found Mateo leaning against a giant piles of newly cleaned dishes. Half of his face covered by his arms, the younger sibling's smile as a he dreamed hidden, and his eyes closed while his chest calmly went up and down, calmly. He knelt down and brushed some of his little brother's bangs out of his eyes, and stared wide-eyed when he felt his thumb come across something wet.<br>He looked back down, his brother still smiling, though it looked more forced now that he looked closer, and was silently crying.  
>"Sayonara big brother… Go-Good luck being a pirate…"<p>

**09. Ocean**  
>Staring out at the ocean, the two brothers together… Marco leaning against the wooden railing, his head on top of his arms, and Mateo sitting down on the railing as he held some of his strands of hair behind his ear as they watched the sunset… Silent… It was something both brothers would remember forever, never mind the fact that neither ever spoke as they listened to the gentle waves crash against the ship softly.<p>

**10. Aviary**  
>Though Mateo had never met Thatch, Marco could sometimes hear the old friend inside his head; usually badgering him jokingly about how him being the Phoenix messed with his genes and made him more bird-like then normal.<br>"Look at this room, big brother! It looks like a nest!" Mateo scolded  
>Oh good God, take mercy on this poor soul.<p>

**11. Of Doves & Phoenixes**  
>If Marco was a Phoenix; a symbol of strength, unity, and respect—things that fit Marco perfectly, then Mateo was a dove; a symbol of peace and love—things that fit Mateo even more perfectly.<p>

**12. Brotherly Instincts**  
>Marco had never been more angry then when he found Mateo being harassed by a bunch of boys while he was out get supplies for the ship, all of them thinking Mateo was too pretty to be counted as a guy (along with the rest of the world).<br>So, naturally, his You-Mess-With-My-Brother-And-I'll-F*ckin'-Kill-You instincts kicked in.  
>Despite the split lip and now loose tooth –both of which he could easily fix with regenerating- it was worth it to see Mateo drop his items and hug him, crying.<br>"B-Big brother…! I-I was so scared…!"  
>And then, suddenly, he felt like those bullies needed another few good kicks.<p>

**13. Appearances**  
>Most people admit that when you tell them Marco "The Phoenix" and Mateo "The Dove" were related, they could see it. But otherwise, nobody could tell straight on. Because Mateo had short brown "girly looking" hair with big doe eyes and wore dresses and Marco was blonde with dark gray eyes, showing off his masculinity with an open jacket and PANTS. The two, if you just looked at them, were complete opposites. When you found out the truth though; you could see they shared the same I-Got-Ya' smirk, carried themselves around as people who've seen both better and worse days, and their calm way of handling things… They shined through and when you'd take a second look, you'd wonder how on Earth could you NOT see how alike they were?<p>

**14. Nicknames**  
>Marco nodded as he confirmed that Mateo was indeed a "son", not a "daughter". And then fell back down when Mateo stated that he didn't care and Whitebeard decided to keep calling him his "daughter".<p>

**15. Beautiful**  
>Mateo was always in awe of his brother's gracefulness as a Phoenix.<p>

**16. I Don't Dance***  
>Ace stopped walking, peaking out from his hat when he awoke to the sound of the two brothers arguing again as Marco tried to teach Mateo how to swordfight.<br>"Come on, big brother!" Mateo ducked another angry stab  
>Marco grew somewhat angrier, showing that the argument had been going on for a while and he was growing irritated <em>quickly<em>, "No!"  
>"They aren't that different!" Mateo pouted, which Ace felt awkward on whether or not to call "cute" or not<br>"Uh, yeah, they kinda' are!"  
>Ace gave a long whistle to Mateo as he jumped over another swing, stepping on top of the blade to win it and flipping over so he was out of the blade's reach, though he staggered at his landing. Again, he did a mix of a pout and frown, showing his determination to win this debate about… whatever.<br>"But it's easier to think that way!"  
>Marco pointed an angry finger at the sky, adding another finger at his second statement, "It's easier for a WOMAN! You're not a WOMAN!"<br>Mateo sighed, annoyed, "…I feel somewhat insulted by that comment, along with women of the world who are thinking you're being sexist, big bro'."  
>Ace fell backwards when Marco lost it –-which was although scary to see him when he was, what turned out to be the subject of their debate was more pathetic then how scary Marco was—<br>"DANCING AND SWORD-FIGHTING ARE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!"

**17. Hide**  
>It had been when Mateo had came out of the kitchen to tell everyone to quiet down (they already destroyed his soufflé) that he realized that pirates do occasionally have battles on deck and that's it's safer to just wait it out.<p>

**18. Bipolar**  
>"Big brother!" Mateo cried, pushing his brother out of the way as an unexpected flowerpot fell from above. The position they took as the pot crashed against the road made Yaoi-fangirls squeal and the crewmates laugh.<br>…Actually, Marco would've laughed too if one of the shards of the pot hadn't grazed against the younger sibling's cheek, making him bleed… barely. But just enough to think the situation could've ended much worse; though whether or not he was worried of himself being a victim of a freak-accident or his brother getting more wounded if the flowerpot had landed a second earlier is uncertain.  
>Mateo glared daggers at his older brother, "Marco…" everyone froze at the cold sound coming from the younger sibling's voice, "You ever scare me like that again, and I'll kill you."<br>Then his eyes grew big and began to water as he hid his head in Marco's chest, "D-Don't you know how much you scared me, baka!"

**19. Not As I Do**  
>Marco's personal beliefs mattered little to none when he thought of Mateo following in his example. How Marco would die for his crew, his captain, his brother… He didn't want Mateo to die. Ever. He'd be d*mned to h*ll if the younger sibling ever even tried to.<br>"If it EVER comes down between _you_ and _them_, send them flowers." He ordered  
>It was just another "Do as I say, not as I do" moments.<br>Which is probably why Marco got so incrediably angry when he found himself tied up, yelling, pleading, begging and Mateo standing tall, showing no emotion except for a small, soft, comforting smile to Marco…  
>While a gun was pressed to the younger sibling's head.<p>

**20. Karaoke**  
>Marco blushed when he saw and heard his younger brother on stage, dressed in a pink frilly sundress, as he sang, sounding exactly like the opposite gender.<br>"One day you will get your wings, …and you fly the blue, blue sky! You can touch the blue, blue sky! …You will get your chance to shine~"  
>In the same tone, Marco slammed his hands on the table as he glared at Mateo, "One day you will GET YOUR BUTT HANDED TO YOU. I WILL KICK YOU INTO THE 'BLUE, BLUE SKY' AND YOU WILL NEVER GET THE CHANCE TO SIT DOWN AGAIN IF YOU DON'T GET OFF THAT STAGE, MATEO!"<br>Mateo sweat-dropped before sighing and handing the microphone to another. Sighing again when he reached his brother's table, stating simply as he sat next to him, "You take karaoke night WAAAAY too seriously, big brother…"

**21. Mistake**  
>To be frank, Mateo smiled at the sight, being used to it and paid for people do such things to him back in his hometown.<br>Ace burst out laughing at the sight.  
>Marco practically killed Sanji for flirting with his younger brother and calling him "a beautiful princess".<p>

**22. Manga**  
>"Big brother…"<br>"What?"  
>"My life feels like some sort of twisted shounen manga. Does yours?"<br>"Pssh, everyone feels like that here, Mateo."

**23. The Best Of The Best**  
>Mateo was born with a family, and he still had one, despite the fact of how many adults tried to correct him.<br>He was born with an older brother. The best of the best. He only left because it'd be better, easier, for both of them once he came back with sacks upon sacks of money.  
>Never again would Mateo have to beg for money.<br>Never again would Mateo have to go to sleep hungry.  
>Never again would Mateo have to go to sleep in the winter without a roof, without a blanket.<br>Marco would make everything okay.  
>He'd steal money, despite Mateo's protests of it not being right.<br>He'd use the stolen money for food, because if Mateo died because of the lack of nutrients, he'd never forgive himself.  
>He'd sell whatever money was left over for blankets and hold the younger sibling for warmth underneath the stars.<br>Mateo had a family; he had a brother named Marco.  
>The best of the best.<p>

**24. Mommy**  
>Marco jolted up when he heard his little brother speak, "Marco… did I kill mommy?"<br>"What? NO! Of course not, baka!"  
>"B-But the old ladies said mommy died of childbirth…!"<br>"Mom's still alive!" Marco yelled, demanding not be argued with, he put a finger on Mateo's chest, "She died so you can live, she loves you that much. Mom lives within you, so don't you EVER think you killed her! Do you hear me?"  
>In retrospect, the idea of telling a little boy that a woman lives inside of him might've triggered the fact that the same little boy wears dresses…<br>But d*mn it, Marco wouldn't take back those words for all the Beris in the world.

**25. Faith**  
>Mateo looked at Marco, with an angry scowl at his brother's words, that the crew could not believe in him as captain because he could not believe in himself.<br>Mateo grabbed his older brother, roughly and almost painfully, with a strength that did not fit the younger sibling. Marco looked up with bloodshot eyes as Mateo stated simply, stated a cold hard fact.  
>"Big brother,… if you do not believe in yourself, then for the love of God…! Then believe in ME who believes in YOU!"<p>

**26. Beautiful**  
>Click-clack. Click-clack…<br>Mateo looked up, his face filthy and his hair uncombed and in matts while dressed in rags. It was his first months without his beloved big brother and things weren't going well…  
>Click-cla—The steps of newly bought heels stopped in front of Mateo. It was a woman, an incrediably beautiful one too, Mateo realized with a blush. The woman stooped down to his level and smiled, "Hey there, Mateo… Let's go get you cleaned up, alright?"<br>It was then when Mateo opened his eyes from the dream, he gave a teary smile to the sky. He knew, in some supernatural way, that woman has been his mother.  
>And his big brother was right, in two ways.<br>One, Mateo did look just like her.  
>And two, she was even more beautiful then his words could describe.<p>

**27. Feelings**  
>Marco felt proud when he saw Mateo tell these small orphans about all these tales the younger teen had learned about the seas.<br>That pride quickly faded as he sweat-dropped when one of the little boys called his brother a cross-dresser and Mateo smacked up up the forehead, an angry vein sticking out of his forehead… "WHAT DID YOU SAY YOU LITTLE PUNK?" Mateo yelled, causing the boy to cower in comical fear.  
>In the place of the pride Marco felt was empathy for that poor, poor boy.<p>

**28. Missed Years**  
>The years he had escaped out of Mateo's life were unknown to Marco. He supposed as the younger brother began unpacking items from the town that he couldn't remember where or who they were from… Well, he sighed sadly, he supposed it was his fault for leaving for so long in the first place.<p>

**29. Training**  
>Mateo had looked so surprised when Marco threw him a sword, staggering from the catch, though that was mostly from shock.<br>"If you're going to be a pirate, we're going to need to teach you how to take care of yourself in battle." Marco explained sternly, telling his brother that in-between the line that translated to 'You ARE going to learn how to fight and if you try to escape I WILL find you and drag you back here if I have to'.  
>Marco could tell he got the message by the audible gulp Mateo replied with.<p>

**30. Injustice**  
>"Once you become a guy wearing a skirt, well, you start to get sorta' used to people talking behind your back. It's no biggie, really." Mateo smiled, though to Marco it was fakely, as if he was trying to lie to himself.<br>Marco's eyes widened and then they turned into a soft glare.  
>'It still isn't right.' He thought bitterly, 'for people to judge you as gay or bi when they have no idea who you are.'<p>

**31. Foreshadow**  
>"When I die—"<br>"You are NOT dieing." Marco glared  
>"I don't care how I'm buried, but I just want there to be people there. Because then that tells me that someone cares." Mateo smiled widely<p>

**32. Last Words**  
>Mateo looked at Ace as the two sat on the railing together, Mateo began, "You know… I wish you weren't going alone after Teach."<br>"If you're implying that you want to go, Marco would kill me."  
>Mateo shrugged, "I'm not. Marco's not my only brother, you and the rest of the crew are too. And I refuse to let my brothers die. But, alone, I'm scared for you. I'm scared you'll never come back… So, just… Just don't die out there, okay, 'big brother'?" Marco smiled<br>Ace laughed as he offered a fist bump, "Wouldn't dream of it 'little brother'."

**33. Reason**  
>Brothers. They are the reason why you continue to live on, they are the reason why you risk your life, even if the consequence is death. It's just that simple.<p>

**34. Stars**  
>Mateo stared up at the stars, his skin full of goosebumps because of the cold and his lack of an appropriate jacket or blanket. Whenever he couldn't sleep, which had been often ever since his big brother left their town, 8 year-old Mateo would count the stars, like sheep. Even play pretend that one of them was his mother's star and that his brother could hear whatever he spoke to another star. Even after Marco came back for him, 22 years later, Mateo still counted and spoke to the stars…<p>

**35. Help**  
>One time, during his first Christmas without his big brother, Mateo had an hallucination. An odd one, but one he loved and remembered forever. It was after he had begun crying, because he was cold and hungry, and he had seen his older brother call his name from behind. Marco smiled, his arms extended wide while down on one knee. Mateo ran, and threw himself into his brother's arms as she smiled out wide to him, the two laughing… When he awoke, he found out that it had just been a pile of snow, and a nearby nun was taking him out and bringing him to the church to get warm and fed. Mateo smiled as he held the nun's hand, even if it had been a hallucination, his big brother had helped him out again.<p>

**36. Smile**  
>Mateo looked over at Marco and smiled at him. He smiled back. There was no real reason why they did; perhaps it had just been because they just simply enjoyed each other's company after being apart for so long…<p>

**37. Sensitive**  
>Mateo's eyes had widened when he was 5 and found his older brother beating up some adult. Marco's eyes had widened when he saw his little brother watching him, and then, tears in Mateo's eyes, he ran off.<br>22 years later, Marco found Mateo standing over a dead marine who was about to have stabbed Marco in the back when he wasn't looking. Mateo's hands were covered in blood and he was trembling as he fell onto his knees. Marco quickly took a hold of him and heard as Mateo whispered with wide crying eyes,  
>"B-Big brother… I-I killed someone… I-I'm a murderer…" he cried into his elder brother's bare chest, "I killed someone! I-I killed someone!"<br>Mateo was sensitive about people and them getting hurt, even if he didn't know them. He wasn't meant to be a pirate. He was too young, too naïve, and too innocent and pure… But d*mn it, if Mateo had to kill another marine to save his brothers' (Marco, the crew, Whitebeard…) lives, he would NEVER hesitate.

**38. Wish**  
>Marco had read somewhere that if you tie a written wish to a balloon and let it free, it will go to God and he will see the message. So Marco wrote something down on a napkin, bought a bright red balloon and let it free. On the napkin he had scribbled down "I wish Mateo would stop making me worry about him so much. Having a little brother who's slow really does making the elder brother worry…"<p>

**39. Sibling Rivalry**  
>Mateo's back was pressed against his brother's, the two surrounded by marines with evil smiles and deadly weapons.<br>"You got a plan?" Mateo whispered as he eyed their opponents for anyone who would come out lashing  
>"Yeah." Marco's right arm became alit with blue flames, "Kick their f*ckin' *sses and go back to the ship."<br>Mateo quickly picked up a degraded iron pipe and with a shaky smile (he still wasn't quite used to bashing people's heads in) before launching himself forward at a nearby marine, "Last one to the ship owes the other 100 berri, big brother!"  
>Marco laughed as he flame-kicked another marine, "Pssh, you're on little brother!"<p>

**40. Rules**  
>Mateo's life went by rule: "I do what I want to do."<br>There was a simple reason why he was who he was; if Mateo stayed the little orphan boy he was, he would've died long ago, if he became Mateo-The-Girl, he would live. That was why he was wearing a dress; not because he wanted attention, but because he wanted to, if other guys would whistle at him as he walked, then good for them. That was why he was still living; he did whatever he wanted, and because what he wanted turned out to be what he needed in life. That made it into a win-win.  
>But then, Marco-The-Brother came back into town. He took Mateo onto a pirate ship in order to look after him and Mateo's rule changed.<br>"Life without a family (or crew, whatever) isn't a life worth living."

**41. Brothers**  
>The two were close, though not as close as Mateo was to his brother, but still. For him, Mateo took off his feminine clothing and put on a pair of pants and a long sleeve shirt, using a tie to keep his hair out of his face, as he drew his sword, angry beyond compare. With this new, and temporary, look, no one could honestly recognize Mateo. But Mateo didn't care.<br>He glared at the oncoming island, on the left-hand side of his captain, all the members of the crew along with ships all around them ready to fight to the death.  
>They would not, could not, allow their fellow crewman –Ace D. Portgas- to be executed without a fight. For Mateo, and maybe even Marco, Ace was more then their friend. He was like their other brother. Scr*w biology.<br>Mateo would rather be d*mned to h*ll then let him die without a fight to the death.

**42. Flowers**  
>Mateo had a book called "Language of the Flowers". Marco picked it up one day, the day after the war, just because he felt nostalgic and mournful for his little brother... He found had pressed and written a name on each flower that reminded him of someone. For Whitebeard, he had written his name under a White Clover, meaning "I promise", under that he wrote "I promise to repay my debt for you for taking my big brother as your son". For Thatch he pressed a Peony, meaning "Masculinity, bravery" and he wrote "For going even into death to protect Whitebeard, his sons, his treasure, and his ideals. Miss you." Ace had an Amaryllis, which translated to "Pride", and he wrote "You're my favorite brother that I'm not biologically related to." And for Marco he pressed in a Camanula meaning "Gratitude", in which Mateo added "For being the best big brother anyone could ask for. I love you."<br>Tears slowly falling with a small smile, Marco turned the page to "Baby's Breath" meaning "Innocence, pure of heart" and wrote "I miss you, I love you, and I wish you were still with me Mateo. I will see you again someday".  
>And he was going to find and press that flower into that book, sealing what he had written like Mateo had done for everyone else he cared about.<p>

**43. Orders**  
>Marco's orders to Mateo were simple "Stay close to me, I want to keep an eye on you in case you need help". What happened was that Marco had been preoccupied with these marines that kept gaining up on him, making it seem like for every one that he got rid of, two more appeared. Because of that, Marco didn't see Mateo be forced to take on more then he could chew.<p>

**44. Dieing**  
>Marco didn't see any of it. He tried to watch out, but he had failed. And, in his book, that made this mess his fault.<br>His fault why his baby bro' was bleeding to death in his arms.

**45. Mateo's Death**  
>"M-Marco…"<br>"Mateo, Mateo I-I'm so sorry…" Marco cried, tenderly touching the stab that pierced his brother's heart, an unhonorable strike from behind. If he had just seen him a second earlier…  
>"I'm sorry, Marco… I-I failed y-you, P-Pops, and Ace…" Mateo sobbed<br>"Shh, you didn't fail us." Marco comforted, there was no hope in telling his little brother to be quiet, that he shouldn't talk. There was no saving him despite whatever Marco wanted to believe.  
>"I'm so, so sorry…" Mateo cried softly, "I'm going to die… An-And… And I'm s-scared Marco, I-I don't want to be, but I'm scared of dieing and going to h*ll—"<br>"You aren't going to h*ll, Mateo, you're going to heaven. You're going to heaven, you're going to become an angel, an-and I'm going to do my best to join you." Marco kissed his little brother's forehead, touching both their foreheads, "…I love you, Mateo. You're going to be okay."  
>"I-I love you too, big brother…" Mateo stroked a trembling hand on his brother's cheek, before it fell and Marco stood, his hands covered in his brother's blood and his mind replaying his brother's death like a horrible broken record.<br>He stood up, a revengeful fire in his eye 10 times stronger then his Phoenix flames as he turned to the murderer, a smiling Admiral Kizaru, before turning into full Phoenix form and launching himself at the man, seeing red.  
>"I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU, KIZARU!"<p>

**46. Cosmic Power**  
>Mateo was not gone, Mateo was still fighting. He was dead, but still fighting as a ghost. He could touch no one, no one could see him,… but he raised his arms to the sky and spoke encouraging words, hoping that at least they could be heard, and in some way he could help, even after death. That was Mateo's own special power, not by hakai or a Devil Fruit.<br>He sang, he sang and all heard, all stood up again and fought again, never mind how battered they were. They regained energy, spirit, and began to push back the marines. It wasn't much, but it was Mateo, the first to die in this war, could do. They had a common goal; save Ace and avenge their dead brother and sister nakama.

**47. Utter Solitude**  
>As they retreated from the island, Marco stopped and picked up his brother's dead body. He was going to get a proper funeral, he wouldn't allow him to die here. He almost burst into tears again when he realized how cold he was. Their mission was a failure; Ace was dead, Whitebeard was dead, and Mateo was dead.<br>Marco was alone.  
>All alone.<p>

**48. Ghosts & Hope**  
>Ace's eyes widened as he noticed, though he was now dead, he could see others who had died for him as well. Members of his crew, with him. But gone.<br>And he almost cried when he saw Luffy's cry over him, but when he noticed Marco see his younger brother's dead body, and his mind snap… Ace couldn't take it anymore. He cried.  
>He felt a tap and looked with sad eyes at Mateo, a deadman as well, dressed in men's clothing, as he offered Ace a rag as a handkerchief, "It's okay. We're all okay. Everything will be fine…" Even as a deadman, Mateo could still find the hope to smile, which just made Ace bring his head down onto the younger man's shoulder in which Mateo hugged him gently as he continued softly, "Everything will be alright, Ace."<br>He truly was like a little dove; full of hope and wishes of peace.  
>"Everyone else is going to make it out of here just fine..."<p>

**49. Dove**  
>Marco stood in front of the three main graves.<br>Edward Newgate; Captain and Beloved Father  
>Portgas D. Ace; A Brave Man and Brother<br>Mateo; A Brother and Dove Of Hope  
>He turned to Shanks with a pair of sad eyes, "…Thank you for giving them proper burials."<br>"Of course.. Mateo, that was your younger brother, right?"  
>Marco nodded sadly, "Yes… as far as we know, he was the first to die there."<br>"He was a brave boy, but can I ask about the dove thing?"  
>Mateo smiled, "They always said… that if I was a Phoenix, then Mateo was a dove. He was so much… smaller, then me. And he was hoping for a way out of violence, to peace. And he kept hoping that one day, all of us would be able to be together without having to worry about the marines finding us."<br>"Oh. I was thinking it was a family/flock thing with you."  
>"Oh shut the h*ll up, Shanks."<p>

**50. Letters**  
><em>Dear <em>_little __brother, __today __is __cold and it is presently snowing brutally out there, but __I__'__ve __been __told __we__'__re __near __the __snow __islands. __The __crew __was __happy __with __the __servings __of __warm __sake __and __pancakes __for __breakfast, __though __I __didn__'__t __allow __any __of __them __to __get __drunk. __We __need __more __supplies, __we__'__re __running __out __of __salt, low on water, and we're half-way through our last barrel of sake, __but __we__'__re __supposed __to __be __near __an __island sometime today__, __so __I __wouldn__'__t __worry__…__._  
>Even though he was gone, Marco (the new captain of the Whitebeard Pirates), found great comfort in writing letters to his brother. Telling him everything from what they ate to breakfast, to who died, to the weather, to their newest victories. He wrote to Mateo everyday, but to make sure the crew wouldn't think anything they shouldn't and in hopes they would somehow fly up to heaven where he could read them, he burned them. He burned every single one.<br>_I __miss __you __and __I __love __you so much Mateo.  
>Sincerely, <em>_Marco_  
>~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.<p>

All: …Has anybody other then me noticed whenever Marco brings up the origin of Mateo's gender or sexual-likes, Mateo immediately sounds at least a bit(? Maybe more) male? XD

All: Also, Mateo was 5 or 6 years old when Marco left, making him about 27 or 28 when Marco first comes back. If I wrote else wise in the story/drabbles, that was a typo. Sorry.. ^^"

06. Baka= Stupid/Idiot (in "polite" terms) (My question though is how can an insult be "polite"? :| )

16. (About dancing and sword-fighting) I like the songs, such as, but not limited to, "I Don't Dance", I am NOT a fan of High School Musical the actual movies.

20. (When Mateo sings like a girl XD) The song is titled "A Chance To Shine" which I heard on a TV show called "Oban: Star Racers".

25. This was quoted from Kamina from "Gurren Lagann"

30: This takes place, in my mind, right after Mateo was walking down a street and people recognized him as a guy wearing a dress, and started to down-talk him. It's sad but true, there are people out there who strictly anti-gay/lesbian and will say their opinions in a hurtful way. It's sad, because if America has freedom of religion, then that means they have freedom of a right of what to believe. Therefore, people have a right to believe in loving the same sex. It's not wrong, it's normal, just as if a boy was to love a girl, a girl can love another girl and a boy can love another boy. Mateo is not gay however, he is simply a cross-dresser (though he doesn't like that term…) and people probably would stereotype him as gay. It makes me sad to see Americans denying others of their rights. :(

46: I always pictured Mateo singing "Cosmic Love" by Florence & The Machine. It's amazing. :3  
>www. youtube. com watch? v=N-j gzVHy Zd4 (erase the spaces)

49: I couldn't find Marco's last name, so I just decided that they didn't know their parents well enough to know/remember their last name, so Mateo's grave just reads his first name.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

***READ & REVIEW PLEASE!***


End file.
